The present invention relates generally to the field of software defined networking networks (“SDN networks”), and more particularly to inter-tenant and inter-openflow island communications in SDN networks. In conventional SDN networks, a centralized controller takes care of communication between the hosts in a given OF (openflow) island controlled by it. Conventionally, these communications can be: (i) either L2 protocol or L3 protocol; and (ii) intra tenant (between entities associated with a single tenant) or inter-tenant (between entities associated with more than one tenant).
OpenFlow (or “openflow”) is a communications protocol that gives access to the forwarding plane of a network switch or router over the network. OpenFlow enables remote controllers to determine the path of network packets through the network of switches. Openflow separates the control from the forwarding to provide sophisticated traffic management. Openflow is often conventionally used in software defined networking (SDN). In conventional openflow systems, one openflow controller manages a set of openflow switches to form an “openflow island.”